 |
What a lift the pope’s visit broughtBased on the theme, “Christ Our Hope,” he came to remind us: “Those who have hope must live different lives!” Many people took advantage of the opportunity for a once–in–a–lifetime chance to see the leader of the Catholic Church in their own country by making a pilgrimage to Washington or New York last week. Several advance stories told us to expect a stern Pope Benedict ready to tell American Catholics everything that is wrong with the church in our country. Those expectations of scoldings or rebukes were wrong, say those who attended the pope’s meeting with U.S. bishops and with leaders in Catholic education. Certainly, Benedict issued challenges: He urged all Americans to continue in global solidarity to promote truth, freedom and justice; he asked Catholic educators to be mindful of the need to keep Catholic education available to the poor and to inspire their students to “contribute to society in a way that engenders hope in others”; he told the bishops the Catholic Church in America must recapture “the Catholic vision of reality and (present) it in an engaging and imaginative way.” The pope took advantage of the visit to address a vital issue to the church in the United States — the clergy sexual abuse crisis. He chose to address it several times in order to show how important it is to him, and he held an unscheduled meeting with abuse victims at the Vatican nunciature in Washington. Bishops and dioceses have addressed this issue by reaching out to victims, implementing safe environment programs, checking the backgrounds of employees and volunteers and much more. In facing the issue head-on and at multiple venues, Benedict showed he understands the depth and breadth of the problem and hopes that with his endorsement, healing will continue and be enhanced. At many stops along the way, those who encountered Pope Benedict found a shy, humble man, yet one who was warm and engaging. He smiled broadly, waved enthusiastically and soaked up the cheers of the crowd. Benedict was charismatic and more open than people expected. The fact that he chose to come to his people spoke volumes. This visit was especially important since it was said when he was elected that, given his age and his style, this pope would travel less frequently than his predecessor, John Paul II, who was elected to the papacy at age 56. Yet this trip was Benedict’s eighth outside Italy in just three years. Still, given his age, this might be his only apostolic visit to the United States. He may have only visited two cities but his message is for all of us. Based on the theme, “Christ Our Hope,” he came to remind us: “Those who have hope must live different lives!”
|
Advertisement
|